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This model appeared in a box of decent makeups of Coastal pieces ealier in the year, and blew us away from the start. Our Skateboard Gazelle love is well-documented, but we always felt that this line needed an extra killer application, and with a killer team lineup, it was a matter-of-time before we found a new favourite. Go check Dennis's prowess at the Berrics if you're not familiar with his skills - his football-inspired pick of footwear takes a new turn with his signature shoe, fusing two adidas classics and tweaking them for performance purposes. Selling fast and at a pricepoint that's more than reasonable, given the looks and quality, this won over fans of wider shoes in the office almost immediately. A great, great signature shoe that captures this line's ethos with regards to implementing existing innovations alongside the new stuff.

adidas Skateboarding's Senior Designer, Danny Kinley is the main man behind the Busenitz, and he dropped some info; including the secret of the mysterious suede employed across the adidas Skateboarding line...

Has the Busenitz pro shoe been instrumental in pushing the adidas Skateboarding brand forward this year? It seemed to sell fast.

Yeah, Dennis's shoe was an instant hit with the kids. We were nervous about how well the long tongue would be accepted but Dennis was hyped on it so we stuck to our guns.

Going on the Gazelle in '07 and now this, Dennis's tastes in footwear are, naturally, pretty European - did he request a soccer-style from the very beginning?

Well, Dennis grew up in Germany playing soccer and skateboarding so he naturally seemed drawn to the soccer styles in the adidas archive.

A Copa Mundial style upper and a Handball Spezial style midsole is a great combination - was it a case of the team and Dennis taking a look at archive pieces then taking it from there?

Dennis specifically requested to have some inspiration from the Copa Mundial. We made several different test samples with Copa style uppers and different outsoles including the adicolor, Samba, Handball Plug Spezial, even a vulcanized version. The Handball Spezial just looked and skated the best.

Another part of the Busenitz Pro's appeal is that heel counter and forefoot stitch still seems pretty tech. Is the mix of performance and simple aesthetics a rough one to manage?

It's not too hard if you let go of your designer ego and just listen to the guys that are out there skating every day. I try to still put
something into each design though that gives kids a reason to pick it up and check it out.

The suede on adidas Skateboarding pieces feels virtually indestructible. How did you source that?

Well, while most skate brands use standard cow or pig suede we at adidas skateboarding prefer to use the far superior unicorn suede. It isn't cheap but it's worth every penny!

Was the cut-off tongue Dennis's idea? Did he used to do that with soccer shoes to skate?

That was Dennis's idea but he prefers to keep 'em long. Matt Irving from Juice came up with the idea of putting the text on the back of the tongue while I was down in SF working with Dennis and we had Dennis translate it into German.

It's a less extreme version of the old days of hi-top to mid cutdowns...

Yep, like the days of cut down Cabs and Enigmas with duck tape.

Even the first colourways seem soccer training inspired - were they deliberately archive inspired?

Yeah, there are so many amazing archive colourways it would be crazy not to pull from those.

How's feedback been so far?

Kids are sparked!